Global holding company WPP will require its employees to return to the office at least four days a week starting in April. This decision will affect more than 100,000 company employees worldwide.
In a note to staff obtained by the Financial TimesMark Read, CEO of WPP, wrote: “From the start of April this year, most of us will be expected… to spend an average of four days a week in the office. Read added that “the company’s success is always based on the core principles of human connection, creativity and relationships” and that “we do our best when we are together in person.”
The policy allows the employee to choose the day they wish to remain remote, and individual circumstances will be considered for each employee, with exceptions reviewed.
The pandemic changed the way the marketing world worked, with remote working becoming a necessity for most agencies and brands. But as the pandemic has eased, many businesses have realized both the need to be together and also the cost of having an empty office building.
Brands implemented different policieswith varying degrees of acceptance and success. Financial services company Nationwide required no formal feedback, while brands including Google, IBM, Apple, JPMorgan Chase and Uber told their employees they were expected in the office full time.
Agencies did the same. While some took advantage of the pandemic to reduce office space and hire talented people who weren’t near their headquarters, others wanted people to come back to the office. Although many still have hybrid policies, there is a slow trend toward adopting hybrid policies. stricter mandates to return to power.
During the second half of 2023, Publicis issued a memo stating that employees should return to the office three days a week. In the note, Publicis called the office “an integral part of creating an inclusive and engaging work culture for the future, fueling creativity and innovation while fostering deep connections with clients, strengthening our interpersonal relationships and enriching learning opportunities.
Until now, WPP-owned agencies were allowed to develop their own hybrid working policies, even if head office employees were required to be in the office three days a week, according to the FT report. Amazon has apparently told its global staff that they must be on duty five days a week.
WPP has not commented on this decision.
